Judul : Taiwanese leader William Lai in one of his ‘worst moments’ as approval rating falls
link : Taiwanese leader William Lai in one of his ‘worst moments’ as approval rating falls
Taiwanese leader William Lai in one of his ‘worst moments’ as approval rating falls
Poll finds 42.9 per cent are satisfied with Lai's performance amid backlash over Typhoon Danas response and his support for recall votesTaiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te's approval rating has fallen below 45 per cent for the second time since he took office amid a backlash over his handling of Typhoon Danas and his support for a recall campaign targeting opposition lawmakers.
A new survey released by the Taiwan Public Opinion Foundation on Tuesday found that only 42.9 per cent of respondents were satisfied with Lai's performance - down 5.8 percentage points from June.
The disapproval rating was 44.5 per cent. It marks the second time dissatisfaction with Lai has surpassed support after his approval rating fell to its lowest in November at 42.8 per cent.
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"This is one of Lai's worst moments since taking office," said foundation chairman Michael You Ying-lung, adding that the numbers reflected a growing crisis of governance.
You said the mass recall campaign and Lai's divisive series of "Ten Talks" - which his office says is aimed at unity - were among the issues that have caused him to lose public support.
He pointed to Lai's speech at the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's national congress on June 28, when he urged the DPP to "stand with the people" and back citizen-led recall efforts. "That stance triggered a public outcry," You said.
Critics have argued that the campaign, which targets more than 30 lawmakers from the main opposition Kuomintang, represents an "abuse of democratic mechanisms for partisan advantage".
So far, 24 KMT lawmakers are facing a vote to remove them from parliament on July 26, with more recall votes expected in August.
KMT chairman Eric Chu Li-luan accused Lai of attempting to "purge dissent and establish one-party rule". Huang Kuo-chang, chairman of the smaller opposition Taiwan People's Party, echoed that view, calling Lai's messaging on unity "deeply hypocritical".
"Lai talks about unity while fanning the flames of division and hostility," Huang said. "The gap between what he says and what he does is impossible to ignore."
Lai is also under fire over his response to Typhoon Danas, which battered southern Taiwan in early July. The storm knocked out power to nearly 1 million households, with parts of Chiayi and Tainan - Lai's hometown - experiencing outages lasting more than a week.
According to government-owned Taiwan Power Company, a record number of utility poles - more than 2,500 - were toppled during the typhoon. That required large-scale rebuilding work in rural areas where the infrastructure was already fragile, with the company describing it as "a manpower and logistics challenge unseen in recent years".
During a July 11 visit to a hard-hit district in Tainan, Lai sparked outrage after telling elderly residents seeking military assistance to clear their flood-damaged homes that "not everything can rely on the military".
Footage of the exchange drew an online backlash, with some accusing Lai of being "callous and out of touch". One widely shared comment read: "Even if the military is busy, [Lai] could have offered comfort or asked neighbours to help the elderly. Instead, he chose to scold."
Two days later when he visited another Tainan district, Lai drew criticism over his reply to complaints about prolonged cellphone outages. He told locals that DPP lawmaker "Kuo Kuo-wen has signal", a remark critics saw as dismissive.
Wang Kung-yi, president of Taipei-based think tank the Taiwan International Strategic Study Society, said Lai had failed to convey empathy in response to the typhoon. "His tone was detached and tone-deaf," Wang said. "This reinforces the view that Lai prioritises optics over compassion."
Lai's office spokeswoman, Karen Kuo, later clarified that the military had been deployed for disaster relief but personnel could not enter private homes without consent. She accused some media outlets of "maliciously distorting the president's remarks".
She said Lai's "signal comment" was taken out of context and that he was simply confirming which telecoms carriers were down in the area.
Still, the damage to Lai's image appears significant. Online commentary has criticised Lai for lacking the "compassionate instinct" expected of top leaders during times of crisis.
The typhoon also forced the cancellation of the fifth instalment of Lai's "Ten Talks" - an island-wide speaking tour to articulate his vision on identity, democracy and Taiwan's global role. Four of the 10 speeches have been delivered so far, with the rest postponed indefinitely.
The speeches, which began in June, have drawn mixed reviews. Critics have described the content as abstract and ideological, with little relevance to everyday concerns.
Liu Chin-tsai, a professor specialising in cross-strait relations at Fo Guang University in Yilan, Taiwan, said in an opinion piece that the talks had revealed "Lai's characteristic ideological intensity and mission-driven politics".
"His rhetoric reflects strong de-Sinicisation themes," Liu wrote in the piece published by Taipei-based newspaper United Daily News.
Liu noted that Lai had referred to mainland China as a "hostile foreign force" and presented his vision with "high levels of ideological framing", but Liu said this approach alienated the more moderate or undecided voters.
He said the speeches risked deepening political polarisation. "Lai's Ten Talks were intended to lay out a governing vision but instead they may have blurred the focus on the recall issue, creating a double-edged sword," he said. "The costs may outweigh the benefit," he said, warning that the campaign may unintentionally energise recall efforts against the DPP.
Wang agreed, noting that "vague appeals to unity don't resonate with a public that's struggling with disaster recovery and rising living costs".
The latest Taiwan Public Opinion Foundation survey showed that 53 per cent of respondents disapproved of Lai's support for the mass recalls, viewing them as politically "inappropriate".
While DPP officials have argued the recalls are necessary to counter legislative obstruction - the opposition holds a majority in the legislature - scepticism continues to grow. Taichung mayor Lu Shiow-yen, a KMT member, accused the Lai government of misusing public funds. "The administration is spending NT$1.6 billion [US$54.3 million] on recalls when that money could go to repairing power grids or boosting the economy," Lu said.
The controversy has also sparked broader social tensions. In one incident, a retired military veteran confronted pro-recall activists after reportedly being told to "go back to your country" - referring to mainland China. Footage shared online drew widespread sympathy and renewed attention on Taiwan's older generation of veterans, many of whom fought to defend the island during the Taiwan Strait conflicts in the 1950s.
James Yifan Chen, a professor of diplomacy and international relations at Tamkang University in New Taipei City, said Lai had tried to assert authority through the recall campaign against the opposition. "But many Taiwanese oppose the move, and this has hurt Lai's popularity," he said.
Chen said Lai might try to use foreign policy - including a trip to Paraguay - to "save his falling approval rating at home". According to Paraguayan President Santiago Pena, Lai is scheduled to visit Asuncion next month. The South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday, citing sources, that Lai was planning to transit through New York and Texas - an itinerary that is likely to provoke Beijing.
Beijing, which views Taiwan as part of its territory, has ramped up military activity around the island since Lai took office in May last year. Beijing was especially angered after Lai described the mainland as a "foreign hostile force" and reiterated that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait "are not subordinate to each other".
"Lai is likely hoping this trip can shift domestic attention and burnish his international credentials," Chen said. "But whether that translates into a meaningful bump in approval at home remains to be seen."
Like most countries, the United States does not recognise self-governed Taiwan as an independent state, but it opposes any forcible change to the cross-strait status quo and is legally obliged under the Taiwan Relations Act to help the island defend itself.
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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.
Copyright (c) 2025. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
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